8. Ratan Tata
Tata Group chairman and owns Jaguar/Land Rover
Poised to become a world-class automaker
Rookie of the Year
Who is he? Great-grandson of Tata Group founder. The group owns 96 companies, including Tata Motors, which bought Jaguar/Land Rover from Ford Motor in 2008 for $2.3 billion.
Influence on: Globalization of Tata Motors prompted rival Mahindra & Mahindra to consider buying Hummer (it didn't). Tata introduced its 100,000 ($2500) home-market Nano at Geneva.
Problems: Auto sales are falling in India, leading to plant closures. And violent protests scrubbed plans to build the Nano factory on farmland, after Tata and suppliers had already invested an estimated $110 million to $350 million on construction.
Success: Tata has become a player in the global auto market.
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